This invention relates to novel antistatic agents and detergent compositions, to be used in the laundering of fabrics, containing said antistatic agent, which is a N-alkylisestearamide having the formula: EQU RCONHR'
Wherein RCO is derived from isostearic acid, and R' is a primary saturated or unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbon chain containing 1 to 18 carbon atoms and preferably 7-18 carbons.
The use of various and diverse chemical materials and particularly cationic quaternary ammonium compounds as softeners and antistatic agents for textile products is very well known in the art. It is also well known to employ such materials for their antistatic and softening effects during the laundering operation and particularly in the rinse cycle of the laundering process. This latter technique has been necessitated by the fact that the aforesaid quaternary compounds heretofore employed, being mainly cationic in nature, were not compatible with the anionic detergents, one of the major types of detergents used in the washing cycle. Furthermore, said quaternary compounds are substantially ineffective in the presence of nonionic detergents.
It is also well known that there is a tendency for laundered articles to yellow or discolor when treated with the aforesaid quaternary compounds.
Another disadvantage associated with the use of said cationic agents in the laundering of fabrics with nonionic detergents is their interference with the deposition on the fabrics of optical brightener, thereby reducing optical brightener performance of a detergent composition containing said optical brightener.
Still another disadvantage of the cationic quaternary ammonium antistatic softeners is their interference with the cleaning properties of the detergent by reducing the soil removal effected by the detergent, resulting in decreased washing effectiveness. The presence of the anionic detergent material substantially negates the fabric softening properties of the cationic quaternary ammonium compounds and counteracts the minimal antistatic activity possessed by said quaternary compounds.
Accordingly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,451,927 uses a fabric softening and antistatic composition in the water rinse during laundering, comprising a cationic quaternary ammonium compound in conjunction with an alkylethanolamide.
N-alkyl fatty acid amides, where said alkyl radical contains 1-22 carbon atoms, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,231,508 as foam depressants in anionic detergents; N-alkyl fatty acid amides, where said alkyl contains 12-18 carbon atoms, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,691,636 as foam stabilizers in anionic detergents; N-dodecylacetamide has been used in anionic or nonionic detergent compositions as a foam enhancer, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,702,278; and higher alkyl hydroxyacetamides or -butyramides have been found useful in nonionic detergents as foam improvers, as is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,250,719.
Mono- or diamides having the formula ##STR1## where R is an aliphatic straight- or branched-chain hydrocarbon radical having from 1 to 23 carbon atoms, R' is hydrogen or an aliphatic straight- or branched-chain hydrocarbon radical having 1 to 10 carbons, n is 1 or 2 and Ar is a substituted or unsubstituted aromatic radical, are used as pearling agents in shampoo compositions, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,891,912.
Anionic, amphoteric and/or nonionic detergent compositions containing higher alkyl polyhydroxylated carboxamides as textile softening agents are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,654,166; and higher fatty acid monoamides of hydroxyalkylpolyamine as textile softeners are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,704,228.
Fatty amide-alkylene oxide reaction products have also been utilized as textile softening agents for laundered fabrics, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,060,505.
N-substituted short chain carboxamides of secondary aliphatic beta amines have been used as antistatic agents in the laundering process, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,283,192.
Isostearic acid, partially neutralized to a mixture of the soap and said acid, forms a stable opaque liquid conditioning shampoo, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,590,122; and said combination of isostearate salt and isostearic acid has also been used as two components in a four component emulsifying and solubilizing composition, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,097,403.
An alkali metal salt of isostearic acid has been used together with a noncationic detergent in a fabric softening detergent composition, as shown by U.S. Pat. No. 3,625,905.
However, none of aforesaid prior art discloses N-alkylisostearamides as antistatic agents in the presence of built or unbuilt anionic and/or nonionic detergents.